Do not feel the smell or taste?

No matter how much we know, getting old, we see worse, we hear worse, we lose some coordination of movements, this is inevitable. That's why you will not meet working 80-year-old pilots or 85-year-old surgeons engaged in operations on the brain. But we are so concerned about sight, hearing and coordination of movements that we do not often recall the smell and taste. Therefore, we are puzzled when someone nearby starts complaining about a bad smell that we do not feel, and we can for years not realize that food does not have the proper taste that it had before, not through the fault of the chef.

Loss of acuity of perception of smell and taste as a person grows old, is a consequence of damage somewhere in the nervous system and usually represents a gradual process. In most cases, there is no obvious or immediate cause other than the calendar - and there is no cure. But if this happens to you, when you are young, or if symptoms start suddenly, you can identify the cause in a recent severe cold or another viral infection, in which case the symptoms may gradually disappear after weeks or months. Also make sure that you do not have polyps in your nose . They are likely if you are allergic. And they, of course, affect the perception of smell. The same effect will give drying inhalation , spraying, which wrinkles the nasal mucosa and can completely upset your sense of smell. Often loss of taste and / or smell is the result of a brain tumor . Therefore, if you notice a sudden and continuing disturbance of one sensation or both, tell your doctor - even if you suspect it's a consequence of age. This may not be so.

While your main concern with these symptoms is the inability to smell the delicate scent of roses that you grow in your garden, or the loss of spiciness with your branded foods, there are also very important considerations regarding health and safety. For example, you can not smell the smoke in your house. And it's terrible if you live alone. So put smoke detectors everywhere. The inability to detect a domestic gas leak is another problem. Let in your house there will also be devices that catch it. Loss of taste can affect your diet. Here is one of many examples, an elderly lady with progressive heart failure, lost her taste sensations and, in order to make the food more pleasant, always sedimented her. Increased sodium intake was detrimental to her weak blood circulation and led to pulmonary edema.

Remember: at any age, but especially when you are 65 or more, it is very important to realize the weakening of your sense of taste and smell, not only from a medical point of view, but also because it makes you vulnerable to the dangers around you.

Symptom: weakening sensation of smell and taste